Distributed computer systems have the capability of sharing resources. “Clustering” generally refers to a computer system organization where multiple computing platforms, or nodes, are networked together to cooperatively perform computer tasks.
Generally, software is utilized in a computer system pursuant to a license. Such licenses generally impose restrictions on its use, such as limiting the number of computers that may run the software or limiting the number of users that may utilize the software. For example, in some cases, a unique encrypted key either accompanies the software product or is distributed separately as a part of a purchase of the software product. The software may prompt for and match various criteria against encoded information in the key. In a clustered network environment, the licensed software product oftentimes must be managed across the various nodes of the cluster, which may be time-consuming and/or require special administrative operations.